Milk Vita Raises Retail Milk Prices by Tk 10
Milk Vita’s new price schedule sets the cost of a one-litre packet of processed milk at Tk 110, compared with Tk 100 previously. The cooperative also raised its procurement rate for milk containing at least 4% fat to Tk 53 per litre, from Tk 50 in the previous month.
The revised farmer payments vary according to fat content. Milk Vita pays Tk 54.10 per litre for milk with 4.1% fat and Tk 55.30 for 4.2% fat. The rate rises to more than Tk 60 per litre for milk containing 4.7% fat.
Producers in dairy centres including Pabna and Sirajganj welcomed the higher rates but called for government action on cattle-feed prices. Feed expenses have increased, while monsoon flooding has covered natural grazing areas and forced farmers to depend more heavily on purchased dry fodder. Farmers said these conditions had pushed production costs above Tk 50 per litre.
Amio Kumar Mondol, Milk Vita’s additional general manager for planning and development, said the cooperative had raised prices because feed costs had increased and the organisation required high-quality milk. “Milk Vita does not compromise on quality and requires the best milk from farmers. Therefore, the authority increased prices to ensure farmers remain profitable,” he said.
Md Saiful Islam, president of the Pabna Milk Producers Association, said milk quality was linked to animal feed and that the rainy season increased farmers’ reliance on dry fodder. Raju, a local producer, said private processors such as Aarong and Pran had not matched Milk Vita’s purchase rates. Some farmers are therefore selling more milk to retail buyers and sweetshops, while retaining limited supplies for private companies because those firms purchase surplus during the three-month period after Eid-ul-Fitr when retail demand declines.
Prices for smaller Milk Vita packages also increased. A 500ml packet now costs Tk 60, up from Tk 55, while the price of a 200ml packet rose to Tk 33 from Tk 28. Market checks found that private dairy brands had already raised retail prices above Tk 110 in recent months. ABM Fazlur Rahman, president of the Consumers Association of Bangladesh in Pabna, said the timing of Milk Vita’s increase added pressure to households facing high food inflation.
Milk Vita cited higher operating and energy costs alongside feed expenses. Dr Md Nazrul Islam, the cooperative’s manager of production, said gas shortages had increased factory costs. “Operating a milk boiler without gas costs us Tk 30,000 per hour using alternative fuel,” he said. Despite the price changes and production costs, Milk Vita’s nationwide daily milk collection remains between 100,000 and 125,000 litres, while daily consumer demand is between 80,000 and 85,000 litres.
